Maile Meyer and Drew Kahu‘āina Broderick
KĪPUKA [for “Natasha”], 2022
Singapore Biennale 2022 Commission
KĪPUKA [for “Natasha”] is a site-specific installation that brings together various cultural materials related to the Hawaiian archipelago. The word kīpuka is a Hawaiian term that carries many meanings, but most often refers to an island of vegetation that is surrounded by hardened lava. In cultural anthropology, the word has also come to refer to social-cultural spaces that facilitate the regeneration of Pacific Islander culture and traditions. Maile Meyer and Drew Kahuʻāina Broderick aim to create a cultural kīpuka in Singapore, which shares contributions from an intergenerational group of family, friends and frequent collaborators, including ʻĪmaikalani Kalāhele, Wayne Kaumualii Westlake, Protect Kahoʻolawe ʻOhana, ʻElepaio Press, Nā Maka o ka ʻĀina, Tutuví, ʻAi Pōhaku Press, Native Books, Nā Mea Hawaiʻi, Lawrence Seward, Bradley Capello, Keanahala and kekahi wahi, among others. Their offerings are presented within an altered shipping container, a spatial setting that resembles a makeshift Visitor Centre.
BIO
Maile Meyer and Drew Kahuʻāina Broderick are a mother-son duo. Meyer was born in Kailua, Koʻolaupoko, Oʻahu and educated abroad in the continental United States. Since returning home to Hawaiʻi in 1987 she has worked in community organising, arts advocacy and small business. Meyer is the founder of Native Books, Nā Mea Hawaiʻi, and Aupuni Space, co-founder of ʻAi Pōhaku Press, and Executive Director of Puʻuhonua Society, one of Hawaiʻi’s most long standing non-profit arts organizations. Broderick was raised in Mōkapu, a peninsula occupied by the United States military, on the windward side of Oʻahu. His work as an artist, curator and educator is guided by the ongoing efforts of Native Hawaiian women who have devoted their lives, individually and collectively, to perpetuating the stories and practices of Hawaiʻi. Broderick currently serves as director of Koa Gallery and an instructor in the Arts & Humanities Department at Kapiʻolani Community College. Most recently, he co-curated the Hawaiʻi Triennial: Pacific Century - E Hoʻomau no Moananuiākea (2022). Meyer and Broderick live and work in Honolulu, Oʻahu.
INFORMATION
- KĪPUKA [for “Natasha”]. 2022. Site-specific installation. Dimensions variable.